V. Librando et al., Comparison among active and passive samplers for monitoring polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, POLYCYCL AR, 17(1-4), 1999, pp. 241-254
In this paper we report the result of our research aimed to verify the appl
icability of the biological passive sampling for the analysis of polycyclic
aromatic hydrocarbons in the atmosphere in substitution to the particulate
matter sampling. The work concerned 11 sites selected in urban area of Cat
ania, a town situated on the east coast of the Sicily, where the samples of
particulate matter and pine needles have been collected. The PAH concentra
tions of the needles were referred to fresh and dry weight, to lipids conte
nt and superficial area. The PAH profiles were different for each matrix an
d we showed that the passive sampler can be a substitute of the particulate
matter sampling for medium molecular weight PAH.